For Posey in command see Longstreet's report, Commanded the 2nd, 20th and 50th Georgia and the 2nd Company, Washington Artillery. The South Carolinians under Brig. In. The following Confederate States Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Antietam of the American Civil War. He wrote there was "no design of conquest," and that the invasions were only an aggressive effort to force the Lincoln government to let the South go in peace. Gen. Nathan G. Evans's brigade. The Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864 during the Petersburg Campaign involved only a portion of the troops in the earthworks around the city. Posted on June 26, 2014. McCook's Staging Area. On September 14, 1862, the badly outnumbered rear guard of Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia fought to hold three passes through Maryland's South Mountain against George McClellan's Army of the Potomac. A single 5,000-man Confederate division under D.H. Hill protected Foxs and Turners Gaps at South Mountain. On the Federal side, the Battle of South Mountain was perhaps the first time the soldiers actually forced Confederate troops to withdraw during battle. Battle of South Mountain Conflict: Civil War (1861-1865) Date: September 14, 1862 Armies and Commanders: Union Major General George B. McClellan 28,000 men Confederates General Robert E. Lee 18,000 men Casualties: Union: 443 killed, 1,807 wounded, 75 captured/missing Confederate: 325 killed, 1,560 wounded, 800 captured/missing On September 14, 1862, Union forces led by Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan met Gen. Robert E. Lees divided army at the Battle of South Mountain. While both sides funneled troops into Fox's and Turner's Gaps to the north, excessive caution plagued Maj. Gen. William B. Franklin's Federal VI Corps. Although outnumbered two to one, Lee committed his entire force, while McClellan sent in only four of his six available corps. Instead, he chose to make a stand at Sharpsburg, Maryland. The fighting that took place on the geographical barrier between Eastern and Western Maryland was the first of its kind to be seen in this border state. Series 1, Vol. Miles realized that the situation was hopeless and agreed with his subordinates to raise the white flag of surrender. The Battle of Antietam (or Sharpsburg) on September 17 was the bloodiest day in American military history with over 22,000 casualties. The South Mountain State Battlefield encompasses Crampton's, Fox's, and Turner's Gaps of South Mountain. The Union order of battle is listed separately. Gen. William N. Pendleton, and captured four guns. The American Battlefield Trust and our members have saved more than 57,000 acres in 25 states! The Battle of South Mountain This is a history of General Robert E. Lee's1862 Maryland Campaign, the events that led up to the September, 14, 1862 Battle of South Mountain, a detailed accounting of the battle, and its impact on the subsequent Battle of Antietam on Septembe17. The Confederate invasion might be able to incite an uprising in Maryland, especially given that it was a slave-holding state and many of its citizens held a sympathetic stance toward the South. He undertook the risky maneuver of splitting his army so that he could continue north into Maryland while simultaneously capturing the Federal garrison and arsenal at Harpers Ferry. 13839, 14649; Eicher, pp. McClellan was thus able to use his influence to remove several underperforming generals, namely McDowell, Heintzelman, and Banks; the Army of the Potomac in this regard was a little behind its Confederate opponent as Lee had been able to purge his ranks of inadequate generals in the aftermath of the Seven Days Battles. One possibility is that he knew it commanded his supply lines through the Shenandoah Valley. Aware that a portion of Lee's army was now vulnerable to attack, McClellan advanced toward the South Mountain range that separated the two armies. [32] The army started with relatively low morale, a consequence of its defeats on the Peninsula and at Second Bull Run, but upon crossing into Maryland, their spirits were boosted by the "friendly, almost tumultuous welcome" that they received from the citizens of the state. As darkness fell, the Confederates held a position north of the Old Sharpsburg Road. Following his victory in the northern Virginia campaign, Lee moved north with 55,000 men through the Shenandoah Valley starting on September 4, 1862. Subscribe to the American Battlefield Trust's quarterly email series of curated stories for the curious-minded sort! . Lee then conducted the northern Virginia campaign in which he outmaneuvered and defeated Maj. Gen. John Pope and his Army of Virginia, most significantly at the Second Battle of Bull Run (Second Manassas). Other Confederate troops under the command of General James Longstreet collected supplies from Hagerstown, Maryland. Other Confederate divisions such as D.H. Hill's, had not fought since the Peninsula and would have been better rested and more physically fit. His new campaign would relieve war-torn Virginia, draw new recruits to his army, and win a decisive victory on Northern soil to earn European recognition of the Confederacy. In addition there were the three corps that had comprised Pope's army. "We are driven to protect our own country by transferring the seat of war to that of an enemy who pursues us with a relentless and apparently aimless hostility. The divisions of McLaws and D.H. Hill had been left in the Richmond area during the northern Virginia campaign; they quickly rejoined the army for the march into Maryland. After Lee invaded Maryland, a copy of an order, known as Special Order 191, detailing troop movements that he wrote fell into the hands of McClellan. Coxs 3,000 Ohioans overran Garlands North Carolinians, driving the Southerners from behind a stone wall and mortally wounding Garland. "[11] The president admitted that it was like "curing the bite with the hair of the dog." The fighitng was brutal. An extension of the Blue Ridge Range, South Mountain was a heavily wooded and rocky . The Union portion will follow shortly. While the Battle of Antietam was the most important conflict that took place in Maryland, it critical to avoid overlooking the battle that forced the Union and Confederate forces to meet at Antietam Creek on September 14, 1862 along the gaps of South Mountain. Aware that a portion of Lees army was now vulnerable to attack, McClellan advanced toward the South Mountain range that separated the two armies and planned to attack Lees minimal forces there. Col Edward D. Hall, BG Nathan G. Evans Crampton's, Turner's, and Fox's Gap. The exact size of the Army of Northern Virginia at Antietam has been a source of debate since the 19th century since no army returns were made between July 20 and September 22. Battle of South Mountain - September 14, 1862, Fox's & Turner's Gaps - September 14, 1862, South Mountain - Fox's and Turner's Gaps, September 14, 1862. The following Confederate States Army units and commanders fought in the Battle of Cold Harbor (May 31-June 12, 1864) of the American Civil War. Richmond (Virginia) Howitzers, 3rd company: Cpt Benjamin H. Smith, Jr. Salem (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Abraham Hupp, Williamsburg (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt John A. Coke, Blackshears' (Georgia) Battery: Cpt James A. Blackshear, Lloyd's (North Carolina) Battery: Cpt Whitmel P. Lloyd, Patterson's (Georgia) Battery: Cpt George M. Patterson, Ross' (Georgia) Battery: Cpt Hugh M. Ross, Morris (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Richard C. M. Page, Orange (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Jefferson Peyton, Turner's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt William H. Turner, Long Island (Virginia) Battery: Cpt Abram Wimbish, Amherst (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Thomas J. Kirkpatrick, Fluvanna (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt John J. Ancell, Huckstep's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt Charles T. Huckstep, Johnson's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt. The Battle of South Mountainknown in several early Southern accounts as the Battle of Boonsboro Gapwas fought on September 14, 1862, as part of the Maryland campaign of the American Civil War. Stay up-to-date on the American Battlefield Trust's battlefield preservation efforts, travel tips, upcoming events, history content and more. [14] The Battle of South Mountain was an important morale booster for the defeat-stricken Army of the Potomac. : 74,234; 3rd Div./V Corps: 7,000; Total Union strength: 102,234. Gen. John Bell Hood, they failed to dislodge the defenders. [25], However, nearby heritage areas in Frederick and Washington counties are still threatened by development and South Mountain was listed as one of the Most Endangered Battlefields in the 2009 and 2010 editions of History Under Siege. : Lieutenant Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes experience, Captain Augustus C. Thompson, Co. G, 16th Georgia Infantry, For fully ten minutes the bullets were hissing near my ears. When Genl McClellan came thro[ugh] the ladies nearly eat him up, they kissed his clothing, threw their arms around his horse's neck and committed all sorts of extravagances. Davidson's battery had been left at Harper's Ferry, and Fleet's and Latham's batteries at Leesburg, On 'field return', Army of Northern Virginia, for September 22, 1862, this division appears as of Jackson's Corps (left wing). Lee's proclamation announced to the people of Maryland that his army had come "with the deepest sympathy [for] the wrongs that have been inflicted upon the citizens of the commonwealth allied to the States of the South by the strongest social, political, and commercial ties to aid you in throwing off this foreign yoke, to enable you again to enjoy the inalienable rights of freemen. They provide specific details of the events during the battle. How It Ended Union Victory. [44], Lee successfully withdrew across the Potomac, ending the Maryland campaign and summer campaigning altogether. [1] The Battle of South Mountain was a very important battle. . : A Virginian remembers the fighting at Cramptons Gap, "Keep up good hearts, I am in Gods hands. Why did Robert E. Lee launch the Maryland Campaign and try to bring the war northward? A.P. Despite the ragged condition of the army, morale was high and almost all of the Confederates were veterans, which put them at an advantage over the numerous green Union regiments. General D. H. Hill's report of his operations at this time is included in the, Turner's and Fox's Gaps Historic District, List of presidents of the United States by military service, "South Mountain Battlefield Facts," American Battlefield Trust, "Transaction Fact Sheet: 2013 Antietam Campaign", "Gettysburg Again Among Most Endangered Sites,", "Three Ohio Civil War Veterans Who Became President", "Overview of the Battle of South Mountain", List of federal judges appointed by Rutherford B. Hayes, William McKinley 1896 presidential campaign, Forest Service Organic Administration Act of 1897, William McKinley Presidential Library and Museum, McKinley Birthplace Home and Research Center, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Battle_of_South_Mountain&oldid=1161123930, Battles of the American Civil War in Maryland, Battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, Union victories of the American Civil War, South Mountain Range (MarylandPennsylvania), Articles using NRISref without a reference number, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, This page was last edited on 20 June 2023, at 20:02. This is the Confederate order of battle for the Battle of South Mountain. 1. He began a fierce artillery barrage from all sides and ordered an infantry assault. By the morning of September 15, Jackson had positioned nearly 50 guns on Maryland Heights and at the base of Loudoun Heights. At Foxs Gap, an assault by Eliakim Scammons and George Crooks brigades from Jacob Coxs division was initially successful and claimed the life of Garland, but lacked sufficient support. June 26, 1864: The Eve of Battle. President Lincoln was disappointed in McClellan's performance. [26], A significant portion of the battlefield near the west side of the Moser Road and Reno Monument Road intersection has not been preserved. Ashland (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Pichegru Woolfolk, Jr. Bedford (Virginia) Artillery: Cpt Tyler C. Jordan, Brooks (South Carolina) Artillery (Rhett's Battery): Lt William Elliott, Eubank's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt John L. Eubank, Parker's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt William W. Parker, 61st Georgia: Col John H. Lamar, Maj Archibald P. McRae (, 1st North Carolina Battalion Sharpshooters, Johnson's (Virginia) Battery: Cpt John R. Johnson, 7th North Carolina: Col Edward G. Haywood, 37th North Carolina: Cpt William G. Morris. This enabled Lee to shift brigades across the battlefield and counter each individual Union assault. [3] From this, McClellan learned that Lee had split his forces, sending one wing under Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Jackson to lay siege to Harper's Ferry. . The First American President: Setting the Precedent, African Americans During the Revolutionary War, Help Save 125 Battlefield Acres in Virginia, Help Restore History at Gettysburg, Cold Harbor & More, Help Us Save Hallowed Ground in Tennessee and Kentucky, Help Save 820 Acres at Five Virginia Battlefields, Save 343 Acres at FIVE Battlefields in FOUR Western Theater States, Save 42 Historic Acres at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Support the American Battlefield Protection Program Enhancement Act, Stop the Largest Rezoning in Orange County History, Lost In the Mail: Dead Letter Office Photos, On the Banks and Along Streams: Battlefield Preservations Positive Impact on Water Sources. After dark, Lee ordered the battered Army of Northern Virginia to withdraw across the Potomac into the Shenandoah Valley. In the meantime, elements of the Army of Northern Virginia waited in defense of the passes of South Mountain. Franklin deployed the division of Maj. Gen. Henry Warner Slocum on the right and Maj. Gen. William F. "Baldy" Smith on the left. Col Edmund Pendleton, D. H. Hill's Division[28] About six miles to the south another goal had to be reached - the Confederate troops that surrounded the 12,000 man Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry. The IX Corps was also being joined by Brig. 34449. As far north as Wilkes-Barre, church and courthouse bells rang out, calling men to drill. Lee, outnumbered two to one, moved his defensive forces to parry each offensive blow, but McClellan never deployed all of the reserves of his army to capitalize on localized successes and destroy the Confederates. [21], The specific reason Lee chose this risky strategy of splitting his army to capture Harpers Ferry is not known. In the summer of 1862, Confederate General Braxton Bragg 's army invaded Kentucky and attacked the Union garrison at Munfordville. The lack of food was a serious problem for the Army of Northern Virginia, as most crops were a month away from harvesting in September and many soldiers were forced to subsist on field corn and green apples, which gave them indigestion and diarrhea.
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